Laura Linney will play the role of American novelist Patricia Highsmith in the new stage drama "Switzerland" at the Geffen Playhouse, the company will announce Tuesday. The two-person cast will include up-and-coming actor Seth Numrich as the young man who...

The long-awaited Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts finally opened to much fanfare in November. But there were plenty of other high points this year. Here's a sampling:
• Variety all-stars: Anna Carol gave layers to abrasive Brit twit...

Sunday, Nov. 23
Craft sale Hickory Ridge Community Association hosts a Holiday Craft Shop from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at The Hawthorn Center, 6175 Sunny Spring in Columbia. Hand-crafted items from a variety of vendors will be available for purchase. Free Admission. Information: 410-730-7327.
'Alice in Wonderland' The Marriotts Ridge High School theater department presents "Alice in Wonderland" at 3 p.m. in the school theater. Prior to the performance, there will be a traditional tea, sponsored by the MRHS...

Hal Holbrook will celebrate his 90th birthday in February on stage in Hartford performing his solo show "Mark Twain Tonight!"
The Tony and Emmy Award-winner and Academy Award nominee will return with the show for which he has performed over the past 60 years depicting the words and wisdom of American's great writer.
The show, presented by the Mark Twain House & Museum, will be held at the Bushnell Center of the Arts' Mortensen Hall Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m. Holbrook turns 90 that day. Holbrook's...

In an age of vacuous celebrity, in which body parts can go viral and a good plastic surgeon can get you a bigger pay day than talent, it is heartening to report that Broadway's leading men still come in all shapes and sizes.
Here, a character actor can receive top billing, and the brightest stars often seem to be the ones with the least muscle tone and the biggest eccentricities.
Nathan Lane, no beefcake centerfold, has renewed his claim to being the king of the Great White Way. Paired once again with...

Melancholy runs deep in "Private Peaceful," a richly appointed British period piece about fraternal loyalty adapted from the book of the same name by "War Horse" author Michael Morpurgo.
Set in rural England during the turn of the 20th century, the drama follows the young lives of the closely knit Peaceful siblings, sensitive Tommo (George MacKay) and the elder, gregarious Charlie (Jack O'Connell).
The bond between them is threatened with the arrival of the spirited Molly (Alexandra Roach), who...

Five years ago, while painting a house in Connecticut, Alexander Sharp decided he'd like to attend the Juilliard School.
Sharp, a British transplant who'd spent two years traveling in Latin America and flipping houses in the U.S. after he graduated from high school, wanted to try acting.
"I like America because it feels — not to sound cliche — but it feels like anything's possible," Sharp said. "I wanted to stay here, and I asked this guy what the best drama schools in America were, and he...

"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," the stage play based on the popular 2003 novel by Mark Haddon, opened on Broadway on Sunday in an imported production from London's National Theatre.
The play follows the adventures of a teenage boy, who suffers from a form of Asperger syndrome, as he embarks on the investigation into the death of a local canine. The New York production, running at the Barrymore Theatre, stars recent Juilliard graduate Alex Sharp as the protagonist, a role that was...